Ballistic Missile Threat, Hawaii, What Would You Do?

Saturday morning a false ballistic missile threat alert was sent out to the 1.4 million residents and hundreds of thousands tourist in Hawaii. The alert was sent out to all cell phones in the state.

The emergency state wide alert that went out read:

BALLISTIC MISSILE THREAT INBOUND TO HAWAII. SEEK IMMEDIATE SHELTER. THIS IS NOT A DRILL

According to a Hawaii News Now: KHNL/KGMB article the alert was mistakenly sent out to all cell phones in the state but fortunately it was false. The cause of the false alarm? A state emergency management employee pushed the wrong button.

Panic then ensued for more than 30 minutes until emergency officials confirmed the message was sent in error. The Governor of Hawaii, David Ige, said, at a news conference Saturday afternoon at the Hawaii Emergency Management agency:

I know firsthand that what happened today is totally unacceptable, and many in our community were deeply affected by this…I'm sorry for that pain and confusion that anyone might have experienced. I, too, am very angry and disappointed that this happened.

According to to the Washington Post the worker who sent out that false message has been “reassigned” to another position. The Hawaii Emergency Management Agency spokesman Richard Rapoza stated that the unnamed emergency-department worker will not be fired because he made an honest mistake.

What a doozy of a mistake.

The question I have for all of you is what would you do if you lived in area in which you received a message and heard an automated statement from the government that a Ballistic missile is inbound, you should seek shelter and this is not a drill?

The Miami Herald reported that some people sent texts that read:

Honey take shelter. I love you

and

IF YOURE SLEEPING WAKE UP AN CALL US IMMEDIATELY.

If it were ever happen to me I would certainly hope I was with my wife and children.